John S. Bull
John Bull | |
|---|---|
 Portrait of Bull | |
| Born | John Sumter Bull September 25, 1934 Memphis, Tennessee,U.S. |
| Died | August 11, 2008(aged 73) |
| Education | Rice University(BS) Stanford University(MS,PhD) |
| Space career | |
| NASA astronaut | |
| Rank | Lieutenant Commander,USN |
| Selection | NASA Group 5 (1966) |
| Retirement | July 16, 1968 |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Aeronautical engineering |
| Thesis | Precise Attitude Control of the Stanford Relativity Satellite(1973) |
John Sumter Bull(September 25, 1934 – August 11, 2008), was an Americannaval officerandaviator,fighter pilot,test pilot,mechanicalandaeronautical engineer,andNASAastronaut.
Biography[edit]
Early life and education[edit]
Bull was born on September 25, 1934, inMemphis, Tennessee,where he attended primary and secondary schools and graduated in 1952 fromCentral High School.[1]: 34 He received aBachelor of Sciencedegree inmechanical engineeringfromRice Universityin 1957.[1]: 34 Bull took leave from working at NASA Ames to earn aMaster of ScienceandPh.D.degrees fromStanford UniversityinAeronautical Engineeringin 1971 and 1973, respectively.[1]: 366
In his youth, he was active in theBoy Scouts of America.[2]
[edit]
Bull joined the U.S. Navy in June 1957.[3]Following his flight training, from March 1959 to November 1960, he flew theF-3 DemonandF-4 Phantom IIwhile assigned toVF-114at theNaval Air StationinMirimar,California.Bull was a Navyfighter pilotwith the VF-114 squadron aboard theaircraft carriersUSSRanger,USSHancock,andUSSKitty Hawk.[1]: 34
Bull graduated from theU.S. Naval Test Pilot Schoolin February 1964, as an outstanding graduate. He was a projecttest pilotin the Carrier Suitability Branch at theNaval Air Test CenteratPatuxent River,Maryland,at the time of his astronaut selection.[1]: 34
He logged more than 2,100 hours flying time; 1,800 hours injet aircraft.[3]
NASA career[edit]
Bull was selected in 1966 as a member ofNASA Astronaut Group 5.[4]Together withKen MattinglyandGerald Carr,Bull was named on November 20, 1967, to the support crew for the second Apollo crewed flight of theSaturn V,Apollo 8,to assist prime and backup crew members as they trained.[5]Bull was also chosen as Lunar Module Pilot, withJames Irwinas Commander, forLTA-8,an environmental qualification test of theApollo Lunar Modulein a vacuum chamber at the HoustonSpace Environment Simulation Laboratory.Just before the May–June 1968 test, Bull was found to have a severe sinus problem, and was replaced with his backup, a Grumman consulting pilot.[6]Bull was subsequently diagnosed as suffering frompulmonary disease,and resigned from the astronaut corps in July 1968. Following his retirement, he received a job at NASA Ames.[1]: 34, 365
After receiving his Ph.D., Bull returned to NASA and worked at theAmes Research Centerfrom 1973 to 1985, where he conducted simulation and flight test research in advanced flight systems for both helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft. Around 1983, he became chief of the Aircraft Systems Branch. From 1986 until his retirement from NASA in 1989, he managed NASA-wide research programs in autonomous systems technology for space applications. He continued working with Ames as a consultant until his final retirement in 1997.[1]: 366
Personal life[edit]
Bull was married to the former Nancy Laraine Gustafson ofSeattle, Washington,with two sons and a daughter: Jeffrey Tyler (July 27, 1965 – January 28, 1977),[7]Scott A. (born December 30, 1968) and Whitney A. (born August 1, 1971), and four grandchildren.[3]
Illness and death[edit]
Bull died on August 11, 2008, at the age of 73 inSouth Lake Tahoe, California,due to complications related to long-termasthma.[1]: 367
Organizations[edit]
Bull was a member of theSociety of Experimental Test Pilots,Sigma TauEngineering Fraternity,Tau Beta PiEngineering Fraternity,Sigma Xi,American Helicopter Society,andAmerican Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.[3]
References[edit]
- ^abcdefghShayler, David; Burgess, Colin (June 18, 2017).The Last of NASA's Original Pilot Astronauts: Expanding the Space Frontier in the Late Sixties.Springer.
- ^"Scouting and Space Exploration"(PDF).Boy Scouts of America.RetrievedJanuary 7,2018.
- ^abcd"Biographical Data: John Sumter Bull (Ph.D) NASA Astronaut (deceased)"(PDF).NASA. December 2008.RetrievedJanuary 10,2021.
- ^Thompson, Ronald (April 5, 1966)."19 New Spacemen Are Named".The High Point Enterprise.High Point, North Carolina. p. 2A – via Newspapers.com.
- ^Ertel, Ivan D.; Newkirk, Roland W.; et al. (1969–1978)."Appendix 6: Crews and Support for Manned Apollo Flights".The Apollo Spacecraft: A Chronology.Vol. IV. Compiled by Sally D. Gates, History Office,JSC,with Cyril E. Baker, Astronaut Office, JSC. Washington, D.C.: NASA.LCCN69060008.OCLC23818.NASA SP-4009.RetrievedJanuary 8,2018.
- ^"John S. Bull, former NASA astronaut, dies".collectSPACE.com.RetrievedJanuary 7,2018.
- ^Burgess, Colin (2019).Shattered Dreams: The Lost and Canceled Space Missions.University of Nebraska Press.ISBN978-1496206756.
External links[edit]
- 1934 births
- 2008 deaths
- People from Memphis, Tennessee
- Rice University alumni
- Respiratory disease deaths in California
- Deaths from asthma
- NASA people
- United States Navy officers
- United States Naval Aviators
- American test pilots
- American mechanical engineers
- American aerospace engineers
- American aviators
- Aviators from Tennessee
- United States Naval Test Pilot School alumni
- United States Navy astronauts
- Stanford University alumni
- 20th-century American engineers